Medical Care
The Triangle's academic medical centers hold designations rarely duplicated within a single metro — two separate National Cancer Institute–designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers at Duke and UNC, two independently verified Level I trauma centers, and the state's only ABA-verified burn center, in Chapel Hill.
Duke Cancer Institute
Duke Cancer Institute is a National Cancer Institute–designated Comprehensive Cancer Center — a distinction held by a small number of centers nationwide and reserved for institutions meeting the NCI's highest standard for research, prevention, and clinical care, with an active roster of clinical trials not available at a typical community cancer program.
Duke Children's Hospital
Duke Children's Hospital & Health Center is ranked No. 1 among North Carolina's children's hospitals in U.S. News & World Report's 2025–26 Best Children's Hospitals rankings, with multiple pediatric specialties recognized nationally — a level of pediatric subspecialty depth not duplicated at a typical community hospital.
Duke University Hospital
Duke University Hospital is a re-verified Level I Trauma Center under the American College of Surgeons' rigorous, in-person site-review process — the highest tier of trauma-center verification, reserved for centers with the full range of specialists and resources available around the clock for the most severe injuries.
North Carolina Jaycee Burn Center
The North Carolina Jaycee Burn Center at UNC Medical Center is verified by the American Burn Association as both an adult and pediatric burn center — the state's only ABA-verified burn center, treating severe burns that require a level of specialized, resource-intensive care most hospitals in the region aren't equipped to provide.
UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center
UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center in Chapel Hill is the Triangle's second National Cancer Institute–designated Comprehensive Cancer Center — a rare concentration of two such centers within one metro — running its own independent slate of clinical trials and research programs alongside Duke's.
UNC Medical Center
UNC Medical Center is a verified Level I Trauma Center and operates a comprehensive transplant program performing kidney, liver, heart, and pancreas transplants — organ transplant capability that's genuinely rare per metro, alongside a Level I Pediatric Trauma Center designation at NC Children's Hospital on the same campus.